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The Fontanka (), a left branch of the river Neva, flows through the whole of Central Saint Petersburg,
The river, one of 93 rivers and channels in Saint Petersburg, was once named ''Anonymous Creek'' (in Russian, ''Bezymyannyi Yerik'', ''Безымянный ерик''). In Russian, ''yerik'' is a secondary or intermittent river-channel ( creek or brook). In 1719 the river received its present name, because water from it supplied the fountains of the Summer Garden.
Until the mid-18th century the Fontanka River marked the southern boundary of Saint Petersburg. Along its banks stood the spacious
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
– from the Summer Garden to . It is long, with a width up to , and a depth up to . The Moyka River forms a right-bank branch of the Fontanka. Lined along the Fontanka Embankment stand the former private residences of Russian nobility.
Description
The river, one of 93 rivers and channels in Saint Petersburg, was once named ''Anonymous Creek'' (in Russian, ''Bezymyannyi Yerik'', ''Безымянный ерик''). In Russian, ''yerik'' is a secondary or intermittent river-channel ( creek or brook). In 1719 the river received its present name, because water from it supplied the fountains of the Summer Garden.
Until the mid-18th century the Fontanka River marked the southern boundary of Saint Petersburg. Along its banks stood the spacious messuage
In law, conveyancing is the transfer of legal title of real property from one person to another, or the granting of an encumbrance such as a mortgage or a lien. A typical conveyancing transaction has two major phases: the exchange of contracts ...
s of members of the Russian Imperial Family and of the nobility, the most brilliant being the Summer Palace
The Summer Palace () is a vast ensemble of lakes, gardens and palaces in Beijing. It was an imperial garden during the Qing dynasty. Inside includes Longevity Hill () Kunming Lake and Seventeen Hole Bridge. It covers an expanse of , three-quar ...
and the Anichkov Palace. In 1780–89, architect Andrey Kvasov supervised the construction of the granite embankments and approaches to the river. The river-bed was regularised as well.
Examples of Baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
architecture along the banks of the river include the Sheremetev Palace, Beloselsky-Belozersky Palace, Naryshkin-Shuvalov Palace, and the Church of St Panteleimon (built 1735–1739). Notable Neoclassical structures from the 18th century include the , the Anichkov Palace and the .
Some of the mansions contain museums of the writers and composers who lived there: Gavrila Derzhavin (1743–1816), Alexander Pushkin
Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin () was a Russian poet, playwright, and novelist of the Romantic era.Basker, Michael. Pushkin and Romanticism. In Ferber, Michael, ed., ''A Companion to European Romanticism''. Oxford: Blackwell, 2005. He is consid ...
(1799–1837), Ivan Turgenev (1818–1833), Anna Akhmatova
Anna Andreyevna Gorenko rus, А́нна Андре́евна Горе́нко, p=ˈanːə ɐnˈdrʲe(j)ɪvnə ɡɐˈrʲɛnkə, a=Anna Andreyevna Gorenko.ru.oga, links=yes; , . ( – 5 March 1966), better known by the pen name Anna Akhmatova,. ...
(1889–1966) and others.
Fifteen bridges span the Fontanka, including the 18th-century Lomonosov Bridge and the extravagant Egyptian Bridge. The most famous bridge, the Anichkov Bridge, carries the Nevsky Prospekt over the river.
See also
* List of bridges in Saint PetersburgReferences
*Канн П. Я. Прогулки по Петербургу: Вдоль Мойки, Фонтанки, Садовой. St. Petersburg, 1994.External links
* {{coord, 59, 55, 00, N, 30, 16, 42, E, region:RU_type:river_source:kolossus-svwiki, display=title Distributaries of the Neva Rivers of Saint Petersburg